Ancient Egypt, its monuments and history

Chapter I Topographical Description Of Egypt

Divisions of the country — Mountains— The Nile, its sources, cataracts, and inundation — Climate — Fertility — Calendar of Egypt — The Oases — Siwah, and its oracle of Jupiter Ammon — The Red Sea— Passage of the Israelites, and the canal between the two seas Page 5

Chapter II

THE MOST REMARKABLE MONUMENTS OF EGYPT — DESCRIP. TION — INCIDENTS RELATING TO THEM AND THEIR HISTORY.

Alexandria, Obelisks and Pompey's Pillar — Cairo — Heliopolis, the Pyramids and the Sphinx — Memphis and Mummy Pits — " The Field of Zoan" — Tombs and Grottoes of Beni Hassan — Abydos and Tablet of Kings — Denderah, Temple and Zodiac — Thebes, the Memnonium and Palace of Medinet Abou — Vocal Colossus— Luxor and Great Hall of Karnac — Esneh — Edfou — Syene and the island of Elephantine — Island of Phils . . 23

Chapter III. History Of Egypt, Especially As Connected With The Scriptures

Three sources of information — Chronological agreement of monuments w r ith the Bible narratives — Manetho — Eratosthenes — Survey of dynasties — Building of pyramids — Age of Osirtasen — Invasion of shepherd kings — The eighteenth dynasty — Exodus of the Israelites— Solomon's alliance with Egypt — Conquest of Rehoboam by Shishak, with the monument in commemoration — Wars of Egypt with Assyria — Cambyses and his conquest of Egypt — The age of the Ptolemies — Prophecies in the Bible respecting Egypt— Visit of the holy Child Jesus — Conclusion 60

4 CONTENTS.

Chapter IV

HIEROGLYPHICAL METHOD OF WRITING. Origin of language— Old Egyptian language — History of discovery — Rosetta stone — Labors of Dr. Young and Champollion — Expedition from France and Tuscany into Egypt— Death of Champollion — Nature of hieroglyph] cal writing— Present condition of hieroglyphical studies Page 92

Chapter V

RELIGION OF THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS. Origin of idolatry— Orders of gods in Egypt— Gods of the first order — Osiris and Isis — Animal worship and symbolism— Theology and remnants of patriarchal doctrine— Sacred animals — Religious festivals — Opinions on a future state and the judgment to come — Process of embalming 117

Chapter VI

ON THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE EGYPTIANS. Principle of caste — Kings and nobles — The priesthood— The soldiers and arms of the Egyptians — Their chariots — The husbandmen, traders, and shepherds — The laws, courts of judicature, and methods of punishment— Domestic life— Description of houses in city and country, flower-gardens and pleasure-grounds — The vine and fruit trees of Egypt — Festivities and entertainments — Furniture, food, cookery, and amusements — Hunting, fowling, and fishing — Arts and manufactures — Glass, linen, dyeing, paper from papyrus, and leather — Boats and ships of war — Use of precious metals in gilding and casting — Mechanical forces— Medicine — Dress and decorations . . 137

Chapter VII. Illustrations Of The Bible, As Derived From The Egyp- Tian Monuments

Testimony of the monuments in verification of the Mosaic records — Alleged difficulties and objections — History of Joseph and his brethren— Oppression of the Israelites in Egypt — The ten plagues and the deliverance — Construction of the tabernacle— Murmurings in the desert — Nations conquered by the Israelites — Comparison of ancient and modern civilization, and conclusion .181

Chapter I. Topographical Description Of Egypt

The land of Egypt occupies an intermediate position between Asia and Africa. Territorially belonging to the latter continent, some geographers have, however, reckoned it in connection with the former, and others have assigned to Asia the eastern, and to Africa the western bank of the Nile. The Valley of Egypt, properly so called, is only about a third of the entire district watered by the Nile in its course from south to north ; the whole of which district lies as a fertile land between two deserts. The Valley of Egypt commences at Assouan and the Island of Elephantine, at the spot known as the first cataract. At this point two chains of mountains stretch themselves from south to north, inclosing the district of country watered by the Nile, and ac-

ANCIENT EGYPT *.

comparing it for three-fourths of the remainder of its course. The valley is then greatly extended, and forms an extensive plain triangular in shape, which is intersected by the different branches of the Nile pouring itself into the Mediterranean Sea,

Egypt is divided into three parts, Upper, Middle, arid Lower. The first. Upper Egypt, bears the name of the Thebaid, from its ancient and principal city ; and the third, Lower Egypt, is best known as the Delta, from its resemblance in form to the figure of the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet. The mouths of the Nile are connected with one another by many canals which intersect the Delta, and there are several lakes lying along the border of the Mediterranean. Of the mountains which inclose the Egyptian valley, those on the western side are composed of a limestone formation, containing many fossil shells. Those on the eastern have, in addition to limestone, granite and sandstone ; and between the islands of Philte and Assouan, is found that peculiar kind of rose-colored granite, known as the Syenite, of which so many of the interresting monuments of Egypt are formed. The mountains are of moderate elevation, and bare of vegetation from their bases to their summits. They are not equally distant from each other, so that the Egyptian valley varies in breadth, enlarging considerably as it advances towards the sea. In the granite region, the mountains are so near that there is only space for the river to pass ; while in the limestone district they are wider apart, and extend until they are ten miles asunder, — the average width of the upper valley being about three miles. The Arabian or eastern chain finishes abruptly at Cairo, and the Libyan, or western, slopes gently down into the plain of the Delta. Defiles run off from these mountain- chains, on the one side to the shores of the Red Sea, and on the other towards the Oases in the Libyan Desert. From the coast of Egypt on the Mediterranean Sea to the cataract near Assouan, is a space of five hundred and twenty miles ; and allowing for its limited breadth, the extent of the kingdom of Egypt has been reckoned to be somewhat less than the area of England. The surface of this narrow strip of country may be said to be convex, with a deep furrow in its centre, in which the Nile runs. Any overflow, therefore, of the banks of the river inundates to a large extent the surrounding district, even to the foot of the mountains —

" Which like giants stand, To sentinel enchanted land."

All the territory that the Nile waters becomes fruitful and is cultivated soil, while the remainder is desert. It is not without cause, therefore, that Egypt has been spoken of as the offspring of the Nile. The deposits brought down in its repeated overflows from the mountains of Abyssinia constitute its soil, which is replenished and fertilized every year, and rendered capable of bearing two or more crops. The country from year to year is, in consequence, gaming in elevation, and the most ancient cities, which were originally built sufficiexitly high to be free from the inundation, are now periodically under water. % The soil is exceedingly porous, and the slime and manure left by the Nile make the labor of cultivation very easy, while cisterns, reservoirs, and channels, are constructed to assist in the work of irrigation. The Nile is certainly a mighty river, and in the unaided length of its course, receiving no tributary stream from Ilak in Nubia to the sea, it is without a parallel. Its whole extent is calculated to be upwards of two thousand five hundred miles. To the advantages which they derived from the Nile is to be ascribed the disposition and practice of the Egyptians in rendering it Divine honors, and in this, as in many other pitiable instances, the gifts of the one true God to his creatures were perverted by human folly and sin into the very means of banishing the remembrance of him from their minds, and were made the occasion for the most degrading idolatry. They loved and served the creature rather than the Creator. The sources of the Nile were a subject of mystery to the ancient geographers, which modern researches have not yet fully, cleared up. Herodotus, Eratosthenes, and Nero, prosecuted Inquiries with no conclusive results. In modern times, it has been conjectured that communication exists between the Nik and the Niger, and two distinct streams have been traced which pour their tributary waters into the upper Nile. The one, the Astaborcs, or Tacazze, and the other, the Blue Nile, or Astapus, the sources of which, lying in the Mountains of the Moon, have been traced, and mistaken for those of the Nile itself by Bruce and other travelers. Those of the White, or true Nile, have yet t- » be explored.

The cataracts of the Nile have been the objects of terror to the traveler, and of wonder to those who have read exaggerated descriptions of their greatness, as almost rivaling those of the newly-discovered western world. The cataract of Syene, the first on a journey from the Mediterranean up the Nile, is the only one that ha:: a claim to be treated of as belonging to ancient Egypt. It is a very simple and unpretending fall of water, the grandeur and awful magnificence of which have principally existed in the warm and vivid fancy of those who have written respecting it. Stories have been told of heights of two hundred feet, from which the water is precipitated, and of the noise being heard at the distance of many miles. It is at this point that the two chains of mountains take their rise, and the water of the Me descending from Abyssinia passes over the range of rocks by which they are connected. The river in consequence is broken up into a number of small streams, which boil and dash against the rocks ; and the channel, though navigable, is dangerous, and requires caution and skill in managing the boat. Here is the boundary of ancient Egypt and Ethiopia, and of modern Egypt and the district of Nubia. It is situated in latitude 24° N., about Hve hundred and twenty miles from the Mediterranean. The inundation of the Nile is the chief physical phenomenon of the countr} r , and there is every reason to believe that it continues much the same now as in ancient times. It is a most interesting sight to observe the changes which gradually take place in the river. Without any apparent cause or premonitory sign, the water becomes turbid and red, gradually overflows its banks, and inundates the surrounding country; and as gradually, having reached its height, retires within its proper limits, and recovers its clear and limpid appearance. The cause of this phenomenon is now understood to be the rain which falls periodically in Abyssinia, and which begins in the month of March. It becomes apparent in the increase of the Nile about the end of June, and the river enlarges in quantity for three months, taking the six months following for its restoration to its usual size. At the cataracts it rises forty feet, at Thebes about thirty-five, and at Rosetta its increased height is about three feet and a half. It continues only about three or four days at its greatest and least elevations respectively. During the time of the inundation, in the month of September, Egypt is like a sea, out of which the cities and towns appear rising like so many islands ; and with the departure of the water the verdure becomes most luxuriant, and the soil fertile. As soon as the river rises, it is the business of the agriculturist to clear out the canals, which are opened in September to admit the incoming water, and shut again to retain it when the river falls.

At the termination of the Egyptian valley, where the mountains diverge, is an opening through the western chain, by which the waters of the Nile are conveyed into the province of

Egypt called the Fayoum. Here was situated an immense lake, to serve as a mighty reservoir of water for use when the inundation did not rise to a sufficient height, and as a drain when the land was too much flooded. Thus it was rilled in an excessive, and emptied in a limited inundation. This district of the Fayoum is an appendage to the Valley of the Nile, and is one of the most valuable and fertile provinces of Egypt.

The climate is not generally considered unhealthy, but the heat is very great, and the atmosphere dry, no rain falling in Upper, and very rarely in Lower Egypt. Lightning is frequently seen, but it is seldom attended with thunder. It is owing to the dryness of the atmosphere that bread, fruits, and meal, have been found in the tombs in so good a state of preservation; that the perfumes of ancient Egypt, even after the lapse of ages, retain their fragrance ; and that the inscriptions remain uninjured and legible. The north-westerly is the most favorable and pleasant wind, and the southerly the most disagreeable and noxious. The latter prevails during April and May, and is known by the name of Khamseen. It is described as like the blast of a furnace, dry and of intense heat. A worse kind of wind, though not so frequent, is the simoom. This blows from the south-east. The atmosphere, while it rages, is changed to a red tinge, the sun becomes the color of blood, sand and dust are set in violent motion, and though it seldom lasts more than half an hour, it is always a severe and trying visitation. It is, of course, more painful in the open desert than in the cities of Egypt. Whirlwinds are not infrequent, and sand and dust are sometimes borne aloft by them to the height of five or seven hundred feet, and borne down again with such impetuosity, as to overturn and bury any object which may come in their path.

Some idea may be given of the fertility of Egypt by the statement, that the earth produces flowers and fruits during every month in the year. In November the seeds of wheat are sown as the Nile recedes within its banks ; the narcissus, the violet, the ragged robin, come out into blossom ; and it is the time for gathering the dates and the sebesten plums. In December the trees lose their foliage ; but the wheat, herbs, and flowers cover the earth, and give it the aspect of a pleasant spring. January is the time for sowing lupins, beans, flax, and other seeds ; the orange-tree and the pomegranate come into blossom ; the ears of wheat show themselves in Upper Egypt, and in Lower Egypt they gather the sugar-cane, senna, and clover. In the month of February the fields are completely covered with verdure. Rice is now sown, and barley reaped. Cabbages, cucumbers, and melons become ripe and ready for use. In March the trees and shrubs come into flower, and the wheat sown in October and November is ready for the sickle. During the first part of the month of April occurs the harvest of roses, an important season in the district of Fayoum. Then follows a second sowing of wheat, and the reaping of any sown in the end of the year, and clover yields a second crop. In May, wheat harvest continues ; the acacia-tree and the henna plant come into blossom, and early fruits, such as grapes, figs, dates, and the fruit of the carobtree are gathered. In June, Upper Egypt has its harvest of the sugar-cane, and July is occupied in planting rice and maize, and getting in flax and cotton, and the grapes which grow in abundance round Cairo.

The month of August yields a third crop of clover ; and in this month the great white lilies and jessamine come into blossom, the palm-trees and vines are laden with ripe fruit, and melons have already become too watery. The gathering of oranges, citrons, tamarinds, and olives, and the harvest of rice, bring in the month of September ; in October the general sowing time comes round again, amidst the odoriferous fragrance of the acacia and other trees. Beginning with the overflow of the Nile four seasons have been distinguished. The first, the wet season, extending from the middle of August to December, when fever and ophthalmia very frequently prevail. The second, or fruitful season, is from December to March, during which vegetation makes most rapid progress, and the sun is moderately hot, the temperature being about that of our summer months. The third season is the most unhealthy, and lasts from March to May. It is the time when the Khamseen winds prevail, and all nature feels their noxious influence. The fourth season is that which precedes the great inundation, and lasts from May to the time of the overflow. It will be apparent, from this brief survey of the Egyptian calendar, that the land of Egypt is one on which the Creator lavishes the bounties of his providence — a granary and fruitful place in the midst of the earth, abounding with all kinds of supply for the wants of man and beast. On the western shore of the Nile, and across the Libyan chain of mountains, are situated in the midst of the desert certain districts of fertility and verdure, which have long since received the name of Oases.

The word is a Coptic term, denoting an inhabited place, but has now become adopted into the English language. These oases are surrounded by the sands of the desert, and possess springs of water in the midst of the sterile waste. Poetically, they have been celebrated as isles of the blessed in the midst of the sandy ocean, which presents no trifling barrier in the path of the traveler who may wish to pay them a visit. Across this desert there is no beaten track, the sands being always shifting, and water becoming occasionally of fearful value. In these scenes it is that the optical delusion, known as the mirage, often occurs — the deceptive appearance of water in the midst of the sandy plain. The oases are four in number, the largest being that of El Kargeh. It is situated seven days' journey from Thebes, and is formed by several springs of water, which fertilize tracts of ground around them, inviting and delicious to the eye of the traveler who has crossed the desert. This oasis is reckoned to comprise one hundred miles ; but this estimate includes the intermediate desert between the fertile tracts. Here are the ruins of a temple and a grove of palm-trees, and a city named Kargeh, the eastern side of which overlooks the desert. It has considerable population, and there are besides several towns and villages on this oasis, with their temples and burying-places. One hundred miles from the great oasis is another, — the western, or oasis of Dakel, — inhabited by Bedouin Arabs, who live in twelve villages. Considerable quantities of indigo are manufactured in one of these villages, of which there is a large export. The little oasis — that of Bakariah — lies considerably to the north of these already mentioned. Its capital is Kasr, and it has four villages. It is fourteen miles long, and six miles broad. The most remarkable oasis is undoubtedly that of Siwah, celebrated for the ruins of the temple of Jupiter Amnion and the ancient oracle. This oasis is nine miles long, and two miles broad, abounding in dates, of which a large exportation takes place every year. The temple was built in the most fertile part of the oasis, and the statue of the god was of bronze, ornamented with emeralds and other precious stones. It was borne in a bark, or shrine of gold, and more than one hundred priests formerly officiated at the temple. The site is said to have been determined by the flight of a dove from Thebes. By the lips of the oldest priest the god is said to have delivered his oracles, which were amongst the most highly esteemed of all antiquity. The oracle was consulted by Hercules, Perseus, and others ; and one of its last-recorded declarations is the flattery which it manifested towards Alexander the Great, in pronouncing him the son of Jupiter. With many other of the heathen oracles, it ceased to give utterance to its ambiguous counsels about the period of our Saviour's nativity.

Sot far from the temple, in the same oasis, is the fountain of the sun. It is six' fathoms in depth, and small bubbles are constantly rising to the surface, the temperature becoming warm at night, and cold in the day. Belzoni visited the spot in 1816, and found it surrounded by a pleasant grove of palm-trees. This oasis is situated five degrees to the west of Cairo, and is seldom visited by travelers. The city of Siwah contains a population of between two and three thousand persons. Cambyses, the Persian conqueror of Egypt, wished to destroy the temple, but was unable to cross the desert with his army. The oases now constitute the most valuable resting-places for caravans crossing the desert, and carrying on the trade between Egypt and the interior of Africa.

°At the eastern boundary of Egypt lies the Red Sea. It is a gulf of the Indian Ocean, and by many,has been considered as originally connecting the Mediterranean and Indian Seas— the upper part of the gulf, which now forms the

Isthmus of Suez, having in course of time become filled up by the accumulation of the sands of the desert. The navigation of the Red Sea is dangerous, from the great number of sunken rocks, sand banks, and coral reefs, which are found in it. The red coral, which is abundant, gives the name to the sea. On the Egyptian side of it are bold promontories and lofty rocks, the space between the sea and the Nile being partially desert, and having valleys in certain places full of springs and covered with verdure. The northern arm of the Red Sea is the same distance from the Mediterranean as the city of Cairo. Within the fork made by the two arms of the sea is the desert of Sinai, and the scene of the encampments of the Israelites. At the extremity of the eastern arm is situated the town of Akabah.

Far in the south, immediately on a line with the Egyptian frontier, is situated the old port of Egypt, Berenice. It is on the coast of the Red Sea. A road was made by Ptolemy Philadelphus from this place to Coptos on the Nile, and the trade with Arabia and India was conducted from this port, the vessels thereby avoiding the difficult navigation of the northern parj, of the Red Sea. The place is now deserted, but has a fine harbor, and was formerly a large town.

The goods were transported from Berenice by camels, and ten wells mark in succession the course of the ancient caravans. To the north-west of Berenice lie the Emerald Mountains, the wealth of which remains inaccessible to the moderns. Farther north, on the coast of the Red Sea, is Cosseir, the place of passage for pilgrims to Mecca. It is situated at the termination of a pleasant valley, opening from the Red Sea toward the Nile.

Difference of opinion prevails as to the precise spot at which the children of Israel effected their escape from the armies of Pharaoh by the passage of the Red Sea. It is not easy, owing to the shifting nature of the sandy shores, to determine with any certainty the position of the various localities mentioned in Scripture. Suez, once a place of considerable trade, is a poor, small town near the head of the gulf bearing its name. Below it are some shoals, which, according to Robinson, " are still left bare at the ebb, and the channel is sometimes forded — a distance of three or four miles from shore to shore/ ' Here, according to some authorities, the passage of the Israelites took place. Others, with more evidence in their favor, have objected to this locality, as being inconsistent with the narrative in Exodus, and tending to divest it of its miraculous character. The breadth of the sea at Suez is such as would scarcely occupy the Israelities a quarter of an hour in crossing, and according to the narrative of the Bible, the night was employed in the passage. Another position has been described, to which we certainly give the preference. It is about thirty miles lower down the gulf, near Mount Attaka, where, in harmony with the Scriptural account, the Israelites were shut in by the sea, the desert, the mountain, and the army of Pharaoh. Here the gulf is about ten or twelve miles wide, and the opinion that here the miraculous passage of the Israelites took place, is confirmed by the names of many places in the locality.

We must not fail to mention the efforts which have been made to unite the Mediterranean and Red Seas by means of a canal, and thus to open a direct communication between the south of Europe and the Indian Ocean. The difficulty to be overcome in this enterprise, and which has hitherto prevented its accomplishment, is the great difference of level between the two seas — the waters of the Red Sea being much higher than those of the Mediterranean. Passengers from India now cross the isthmus on camels, or in traveling vans drawn by Arabian horses. A canal was formerly cut, in part, if not altogether,

22 ancient egvpt:

between the two seas by some of the Egyptian kings, which has been to a great extent filled up by the accumulation of the sands of the desert. The emperor Napoleon, during his expedition to Egypt, in company with his engineers, discovered and followed for some distance the track of it, but was obliged to abandon the prosecution of the inquiry by reason of the sudden return of the tide.

Under the rule of the Ptolemies, the whole country was divided into thirty-six provinces or nomes, which were probably of a much earlier origin. This division continued to prevail till the invasion by the Saracens, and the conquest of Egypt by the followers of Mohammed, A. D. 640. According to the French system of geographical arrangement, it is now composed of twenty-four departments.

Chapter II. The Most Remarkable Monuments Of Egypt

DESCRIPTION INCIDENTS RELATING TO THEM

AND THEIR HISTORY.

A description of the monuments of Ancient Egypt may be arranged according to various methods. It would be easy to begin with the most massive and magnificent, and then descend gradually to the more insignificant and minute ; or they might be taken in the order of time, beginning with those of the remotest antiquity, and concluding with such as are comparatively of modern date. If, like the fresh memorials of Herculaneum and Pompeii, they were before us in their complete and original state, it would be obviously most easy to follow them exactly as they stand — to journey on from city to city, and temple to temple, enumerating and describing their peculiarities as we passed along. Time, however, has been busily employed on these ancient structures ; the sands of the desert are burying many of them out of our sight, new temples have been built out of the ruins of the old, and some of the most illustrious monuments of Egypt no longer remain in the Valley of the

24 ANC1EKT EGYPT :

Nile, but have been transplanted by modern nations to adorn their capitals, or give value to their museums of art. Notwithstanding, however, these obstacles and changes, so many and so powerful are the associations of locality, that we think the best mode of giving the reader a general idea of Egyptian monuments, is to traverse in imagination the soil on which they all originally stood, and by help of our knowledge of the past to conceive of them as they formerly existed, undisturbed by the ancient and modern conqueror.

We invite our readers, then, to a journey to Egypt. According to the ordinary route, on the termination of the voyage by sea, Alexandria is the first part of Egypt at which the traveler arrives. It is the city of Alexander the Great, founded by him B. C. 332, as a commodious harbor, with the view of there concentrating the commerce of Europe, Arabia, and the far-distant India. He is said to have designed the city with his own hand, and to have marked out his plans by a quantity of meal sprinkled on the ground. It is built upon the land between the Lake Mareotis and the harbor which is formed by the isle of Pharos — a long narrow island running along the coast. The city lies twelve miles to the west of the Canopic mouth of the Nile. This mouth of the river is the western one, and is so called from an ancient city, Canopus, which has long since fallen to decay, and even the site of which has become unknown, though it was probably situated at this mouth of the Nile. Alexandria is said by some persons to be a more healthful residence than the towns farther from the coast ; but the water of the city is very unwholesome, and the plague makes its appearance here sooner by some days than in the interior. Cisterns are found under a great part of the old city, and it is from them that the inhabitants of modern Alexandria derive their water. When the inundation of the Nile is at its height, the water percolates through the soil and fills these cisterns.